Happy new Google

Published on Thursday 11 December 2008 19:00

GOOGLE. Over the past few years, this made-up word has been absorbed into our everyday speech, used as a verb to describe the process of looking something up via an internet search engine, whether or not you are using Google.com or its sister sites in other languages.

You might Google a person, a place, a recipe, an event. In fact, you can Google anyone or anything and you're likely to get results. If I Google my own name, for example, there are more than 3,000 results – compared with around 78 million for "Paris Hilton", 284 million for "Obama" and 718 million for "sex".

Over the past decade, Google's home page has become the first stop for millions of internet users all over the globe, whether they're looking to track down a cheap holiday, read the news or find their nearest hairdresser.

With so many of us using it on a daily basis, the most popular search terms over the course of a day, week, month or year can offer a fairly accurate reflection of the global zeitgeist.

The company recently released its report on the most popular Google search terms for 2008. Globally, the fastest-rising search term was "Sarah Palin", while "large hadron collider" made an appearance in the top ten fastest rising UK search terms.

The most searched-for recipe in the UK was "cupcakes"; the record-breaking Batman movie The Dark Knight was the most popular film search, while of search terms beginning with "DIY" it was "DIY wedding" topping the list.

So as we approach what promises to be a rather gloomy year, which search terms will we be Googling most regularly? "Abandon all hope" perhaps? Maybe "How to make clothes out of old newspapers" or even "DIY nuclear shelter"? Let's hope not.

Here we attempt to predict the search terms that might just be topping the company's lists come the end of 2009.

FOOD

Search term: Comfort food recipes

AS WE begin to rein in our spending in 2009, we'll be looking to traditional British comfort food to tide us through the dark days. It's cosy, inexpensive and, above all, familiar. "People are going to be looking for food just like mother used to make. This means retro food, home cooking and very British comfort food like sausages and pies," says Charles Banks of culinary trend forecasters The Food People. "They'll be eating less protein, as their budgets get tighter, with a wider variety of cuts of meat – what we call 'head to tail' eating. And we'll see homebaking become really popular, not just because it saves cash but because it makes us feel good."

ARTS AND CULTURE

Search term: fingerpainting

IT'S NOT easy to predict the direction the art world will go in 2009 or any year, but we can say one thing with certainty. There will be no 50 million skulls or disco balls. (We're looking at you, Damien Hirst.) While Roman Abramovich's art-collecting sweetheart Dasha Zhukova may be Hoovering up multimillion pound etchings like they're Chlo handbags, the same can't be said for the rest of us. We predict that 2009 will be the year of do-it-yourself art. Fingerpainting, anyone?

ENTERTAINMENT

Search term: stitch 'n' bitch

"CONSUMER behaviour during an economic downturn is pretty predictable: less money, or fear of less money, will hurt leisure expenditures. After all, they're costly and relatively easy to forgo," says Reinier Evers, the founder of Trendwatching.com.

So while we may be broke, that doesn't mean we'll spend 2009 sitting at home waiting for the arrival of the four horsemen of the apocalypse. So how to keep ourselves amused? Brand development consultant Cheryl Swanson's report From Surviving to Thriving suggests that "fun frugality" will be a key trend for 2009 as consumers approach necessary "belt-tightening" in an optimistic, creative manner. This means spending our free time joining book groups or having clothes-swapping parties, making homemade gifts and joining knitting groups such as Stitch n Bitch.

HEALTH

Search term: personal trainer

IT MAY be a bit of a luxury, but it certainly gets results, and if there's one thing people will be seeking in return for their buck in 2009, it's bang.

Edinburgh personal trainer Mike Heatlie, above, who has trained celebrities including singer Gwen Stefani, above right, says: "I think we'll see a move towards smaller, private, personal training facilities in 2009, for people who have failed to see results at the large, multi-chain health clubs.

"I foresee Strongman (weight] training becoming very popular in 2009, and even personal training for children in an effort to tackle obesity. As long as we see the end of hula-hoop training and pole-dancing in 2009 we should be OK, but I won't hold my breath!"

POLITICS

Search term: Obama

IN 2008, Sarah Palin was the fastest-growing Google search term, but we think we can say with confidence that next year she won't be stirring up quite so much interest. Gordon Brown was the most searched-for politician by UK internet users in 2008, followed by David Cameron, but with Barack Obama beginning his term in January, he's likely to become a favourite. Let's hope he doesn't fall victim to a "Google bomb", like his predecessor: until recently, if you typed "miserable failure" into Google, the top result was "George W Bush". Google intervened to put a stop to that – the killjoys!

TECHNOLOGY

Search term: nichetributes

SO WE don't have the spare cash to splurge on gizmos and gadgets, but we're unwilling to return to the dark ages when mobile phones didn't have touchscreens and MP3 players didn't have enough memory to store every piece of music ever recorded. The solution, according to forecasting company Trendwatching's predictions for 2009, are "bolt-on" products and services that incorporate "attributes and features that cater to distinct (if not niche) consumer lifestyles and situations". These "nichetributes" serve to enhance the products we already own, so look out for accessories like the Dots Gloves, special gloves with metal dots on the fingertips that you don to tap away at your precious touchscreen phone without scratching it.

TRAVEL

Search term: shabby chic

WE HAVE become accustomed to taking no-frills flights and travelling all over the globe, but with a weakening pound and awareness of the environmental impact of air travel, exotic locations are looking less appealing. Might this mean a renaissance for camping and caravanning? According to a report by boutique hotel specialists Mr & Mrs Smith, in 2009 people will be turning their backs on sleek, minimal hotels, instead favouring smaller and cosier inns, or restaurants-with-rooms, specialising in shabby-chic decor, homeliness and "organised clutter".

CELEBRITY

Search term: Britney breakdown

HER recent "comeback" on The X Factor was shaky to say the least, but that didn't stop Britney Spears' new album, Circus, topping the US Billboard Hot 100 chart this week. However, after she spent 2008 shaving her head, crying and generally displaying bizarre behaviour to the perverse delight of the public, we predict that, after a year in which images of her accounted for 20 per cent of all paparazzi business, she'll be hot fodder in 2009 as the world watches to see if she can hold it together.

FASHION

Search term: austerity chic

IN THE fashion world, during times of economic strife hemlines rise but fabrics are less luxurious and silhouettes generally take on a more sombre tone. With collections designed months before they're shown at Fashion Week, the forthcoming round of catwalk shows in spring 2009 will be the first chance for designers to respond to the changed economic climate.

We predict a return to austere dressing, with clean lines and pared-down designs (think Yohji Yamamoto's utilitarian chic), as well as a shift away from super-luxe fabrics, embellishments and details (except at the top end – couture seems to be recession-proof). And with most of us pinching the pennies to some extent, perhaps we'll even be learning to make our own clothes, as well as rummaging for more bargains in vintage stores and charity shops.